Good Surprises that Lead to Bad Endings
by Hermionegirl4ever
Summary: HBP Spoilers! Harry Potter has a lot going on in his life. He misses Dumbledore, he has a certain mysterious person and some soul containing objects to think about, his friends to worry about...and Voldemort to kill. Final chapter and sequel are up
1. The Aunt He Never Knew

Good Surprises that Lead to Bad Endings

Chapter 1

The Aunt He Never Knew

Harry's ride back to Privet Drive was not the best (as if any of them could be considered "good"). He gazed out of the window the entire way home, contemplating all of the problems he would have to deal with.

"What the hell is _your_ problem!" Vernon barked, but Harry just sighed.

Aunt Petunia grew worried. It wasn't like Harry to just sit there and let Uncle Vernon yell at him for no reason; usually Harry would have trouble controlling his temper and there would be some argument going on. She noticed that he had also behaved this way last summer after his godfather died. Petunia wondered if somebody else had died, but didn't dare to ask anything near Vernon and Dudley.

All these years, she had been mean to Harry. She often scorned him, made fun of him, and sometimes even treated him rather harshly. Now that she was reflecting on it, she didn't know what else she could have done. If Vernon suspected that she was being nice to him, he would have gone ballistic. She deeply regretted treating Harry this way; the thought of emotionally abusing her sister's son was horrifying; Lily would never forgive her.

The loss of her sister changed Petunia; it was too much for her, she couldn't handle it. She somehow seemed to be taking it out on Harry, venting by yelling at him almost as though it was his fault she lost her sister. She knew Harry had nothing to do with it, and was grateful that Harry survived, but could not resist thinking 'what if Harry had died and Lily was alive'. She rationalized this was the reason she couldn't bear to hear the word "magic" or "wand"; if Lily hadn't gotten involved with the Magical World, she would have still been alive today.

Harry spent the entire ride home ignoring Dudley and his rude and annoying comments. When they finally arrived home Harry grabbed his trunk in one hand, Hedwig's cage in the other, and went inside silently.

When he reached his room, he shut the door behind him, threw himself on the bed, and started crying. He could not withhold his emotions anymore; the tears just kept coming, from everything that he experienced. This wasn't just because of Dumbledore's death, though it was greatly caused by it; this was because of his parents, Sirius, the many Order members that died. _'And it's all Voldemort's fault,'_ Harry thought to himself, debating whether he wanted to go on crying or start smashing his possessions against the walls. He decided he did not have enough possessions, and then remembered his little outburst in Dumbledore's office in his fifth year. This made him cry even harder.

It seemed to him that he was losing everything he ever cared for, and the thought of him losing Lupin, Tonks, Moody, the Weasleys, Hermione, McGonagall, or any of the other teachers was unbearable.

The only teacher he didn't mind losing was Snape, and he truly hoped he would never have to encounter him again; if he did, Harry would have to kill him. _'Then again, maybe it would be a good thing if I see him again,'_ Harry thought to himself.

Dumbledore was the closest thing he had to a parent since Sirius died, and Snape was the reason Dumbledore wasn't with him. He still considered the Weasleys as his family, but it was not the same as having Dumbledore around. Dumbledore always knew what Harry was thinking (partially because he used Legilimency on him, but that's a different story); Dumbledore understood Harry, and rarely was mad at him. He was always proud of Harry, spoke very highly of him, appreciated and valued him, and most importantly-he cared for him, something that meant more to Harry than anyone could possibly imagine.

And now, the greatest man Harry had ever met and would ever meet was gone forever. Harry suddenly felt very alone, and could not understand why. _'I have Ron and Hermione, and Ginny, and the rest of the Weasleys…and I've got Lupin, and Tonks, and Moody…so why do I feel as if I have no one left?'_

'_How am I supposed to defeat Voldemort without Dumbledore? How am I even supposed to know where to start looking for the horcruxes, or how to destroy them_?_'_ Everything seemed impossible, and Harry was slowly starting to give up.

_'Maybe I shouldn't bother.'_ Harry argued with himself. _'I'm tired of losing every single person that I love. I cannot inflict my presence on any of them, or they will all be in more danger than they could ever imagine.'_

_'Don't be stupid,' _another voice argued back_, 'they're already in danger. They can't be in more danger just because you--' _

Loud banging against the door interrupted Harry's thoughts. Uncle Vernon burst into the room, stomping his feet and making sure to ruin some of Harry's textbooks. Harry knew he was in trouble, because his uncle was nearly purple in the face.

"What the ruddy hell do you think you're messing with? This is my family you're meddling with, and I won't allow it. READ IT, NOW!" Vernon bellowed, throwing an already-opened envelope at Harry. Harry took it, very confused and scared of what he might discover, and began reading.

Harry's heart immediately began racing. It was a black mail from the Death Eaters. They were demanding Vernon to hand Harry over to them, or the fate of their son would not be a pleasant one, as they put it. Harry looked up at his uncle, frightened at what he would have to endure from his uncle for this. Before Harry could brainstorm any ideas, he felt a sharp pain in his stomach. "That's for putting my family in danger!" roared Uncle Vernon. Then his left eye felt like it would explode any second. "That's for annoying Dudley!" Harry dropped to the ground, trying to hold himself from screaming out of pain; he then felt Vernon punching and kicking his stomach, while making sure to step on Harry's fingers, crushing them, just like he did to his books. He felt a foot stomping on his nose, breaking it. "And that's for being the annoying, ungrateful little brat you always were! Now GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" Vernon shouted; he looked like he would be rather happy to help Voldemort right now.

Harry did not know what to do; he felt as if his brain were about to explode, and this worsened when he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his forehead; his scar felt like it was burning his skin. This was the last thing Harry remembered before he fell unconscious.

When Harry woke up, he felt Hedwig resting her head on him. He did not know how she got out of her cage, but he was grateful for it. He could not get up at all; he could barely move. Hedwig immediately brought him a piece of parchment and a quill, and Harry started writing; to indicate the pain he was enduring right now, his crushed fingers were starting to turn blue. Harry had a feeling Vernon broke his finger bones and cracked his ribs…and he didn't even want to think of what happened to his back that was constantly kicked at for about 10 minutes. He wrote as much as he could, and hoped it would be enough for Lupin to understand that Harry was in pain.

_Lupin,_

_Sorry to bother you, can't explain, please come help me. At Dursleys, hurry!_

_Harry_

He then told Hedwig to deliver it as fast as she could; he did not know how much longer he could endure this pain. He stayed still on the floor, trying as hard as he could not to move so as to not cause himself more pain.

He wondered whether his aunt was home or not. His uncle had never hit him before, and Harry didn't think Petunia would allow that, as unkind as she was sometimes.

He did not know how long he had been waiting, but when he heard several cracks outside of people Apparating, he was grateful. He only hoped it was Lupin with Order members, and not Death Eaters; there was no way he could fight anyone in this condition.

Lupin then Apparated straight into Harry's room; Harry was relieved—if he could Apparate into his room, that meant that this wasn't a Death Eater trying to impersonate him; after all, the wards that Dumbledore put on the Dursely's residence still held true.

"Harry! What happened?" Lupin said worriedly. "Are you ok? Who did this to you? Where are you hurt?"

Lupin was getting worried; Harry was barely able to open his eyes, and he noticed that Harry's left eye was bloodshot and had turned blue all around. His fingers were blue, and Harry was bleeding from his nose and holding his stomach as if he just wanted to crunch up into a small curled-up ball.

"Uncle….hit…stomach…breathe" was all Harry could say.

"Harry, I need you to tell me what happened. I can't do anything to help you if you don't tell me where you're injured."

Harry tried to explain, but could not utter a word.

"Harry, I will need to examine the bruises. I am going to levitate you up on your bed, and I will need to see your stomach. It is possible that your ribs are broken and I don't want to cause you any more pain."

Harry nodded and allowed Lupin to examine his injuries. Lupin then cast a few simple spells, and Harry immediately felt relief spread through his body; his eye was still bloodshot, but at least his fingers didn't hurt so much and he could move again.

"Thanks," Harry gave a weak smile.

"Harry, this is very serious. Your uncle did this to you?" Harry nodded. "Why?" Lupin inquired.

"Well, first we got black mail from the Death Eaters and they threatened to hurt Dudley if Uncle Vernon didn't hand me in. I'm guessing that's why he hit me, because he never did this before."

Lupin looked astonished. He did not know what to do. He couldn't take Harry away from this place until his birthday, but he could not let him stay here either.

"Oh, one more problem," Harry began, hoping that Lupin would have a solution for him, "My uncle kind of wants me out of the house…erm…soon."

Lupin could not believe what he was hearing. "What does your aunt think of this?"

"I don't know, I don't think she's home. She wouldn't have let Uncle Vernon do this to me if she was."

"Well…I can't do anything to help you. Are you sure you must stay here?"

"Yes, Dumbledore wanted me to stay until after my birthday. He has his reasons, and it would be foolish of me not to obey his request."

"I understand, Harry. What are you going to do if your uncle kicks you out?"

"I haven't quite figured that part out, but I'm hoping my aunt will be able to stop him. She knows why I need to stay here."

"Ok…I guess I can't help you much in that department, I don't think your uncle likes me very much. I must go Harry, I promised the Order I would report to them as soon as you were safe. We all came here, but when we saw there were no Death Eaters around they Apparated back. I'm glad you called me over; your injuries could have been deadly if you waited longer. Don't hesitate to do that again, if you ever need my help. I'll see you soon, Harry." Lupin embraced Harry in a hug, making sure not to crush his ribs, and Apparated away.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door, but it was very different from the usual banging sound that resonated every time Uncle Vernon made a visit to Harry's bedroom.

"Come in." Harry said, slightly bewildered and sounding very afraid.

It was Aunt Petunia. The look on her face was one that Harry did not recognize—at least not being directed at him. She looked remorseful, and caring. Harry thought he was hallucinating, imagining things because of his injuries. If anything, Petunia was coming to punish him, not to take care of him; indeed, he was surprised.

"Do you--" Petunia stopped herself after noticing she was using a harsh voice again, "Do you feel like talking? You seemed unusually quiet on the ride back home." Surprisingly, Petunia did not seem to notice that Harry was injured.

Harry was amazed, "Since when do I ever talk to you guys on the ride back home? That is, when Uncle Vernon isn't yelling at me and I'm not yelling back at him," Harry replied weakly.

Aunt Petunia half smiled. "You don't, I just thought it would be nice to talk for a change. Sorry to bother you." And with that, she turned to leave the room.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude, it's just that there's a lot going on right now and I'm really stressed."

"Your uncle and Dudley left to go to the video-game store; they won't be back for a while. Do you want to talk about it over a cup of tea?"

"Erm…sure…I'll be down there in a second."

When Harry finally came downstairs, there was already a cup of tea on the table, waiting for him. It took him nearly 5 minutes just to walk down the stairs; he still could not walk properly without hurting. He sat down opposite Aunt Petunia and decided that it was up to him to start talking.

"I'm sorry about before; it's just that there's a lot of pressure on me right now, and being depressed doesn't help."

"Why are you depressed? Is this about your godfather?"

"No. Well, yes. Kind of. Not really, actually," He then realized how confusing his answer was.

"Would you care to make up your mind?" She teased him.

"Well…" Harry hesitated, "You know Professor Dumbledore? The person who came to pick me up last summer?"

"Yes, I had the honor to get to know him. Did something happen to him?"

"He was murdered by one of my professors at the end of last year." _'That stupid, egg headed, son of a wizard, slimy, greasy git,'_ Harry thought to himself.

"I'm sorry, Harry. Were you two close?"

"Yes. He was like a father to me…or a grandfather, pick one," Harry could not believe that he was telling his aunt about his relationship with another wizard. He sniggered at the thought of having the same conversation with Uncle Vernon. He decided not to tell her about what had happened earlier; there was no point.

"I understand, Harry. I really do."

"Well, there's more to it than that, but I cannot say anything else because otherwise you would be in danger just from knowing."

"Does this have anything to do with...Him?" Petunia asked with a slightly shaky voice.

"It has everything to do with Voldemort. And I plan on killing him by the end of this year. No one will stop me. And if I die during that, at least I would take him down and let the Wizarding World live in peace without scum like him."

"You can't be serious! You're barely 17, how do you expect to kill the most powerful wizard out there?"

"I don't know. But I do know that I will not be able to rest until he is dead, and I should kill him sooner rather than later."

"I know I don't have the right to tell you what to do, Harry, but please consider this logically. I understand that you are a very powerful wizard, but you stand no chance against him!"

"There is nothing you can do to change my mind."

Silence broke between the two of them, one that seemed to last for hours. After a while, Petunia said, "I trust you to do the right thing. And I wish you the best of luck."

"Thank you. You don't know how much that means to me."

At those words, Petunia started crying. She stood up, and went over to hug Harry; awkwardly, Harry hugged her back. At the sound of the front door opening, she jumped back, dried her tears with the back of her hand, and told Harry to go up to his room, while sneaking him a smile before leaving to greet Vernon and Dudley.


	2. Harry’s Decision

Harry's Decision

Surprisingly, the conversation he had had with his aunt made him feel a lot better. He was still depressed, but the realization that his aunt didn't hate him after all comforted him.

Harry spent the next few weeks in his room, refusing any meals. After Uncle Vernon asked him during dinner "So, is anybody else dead that you know?" he decided he did not feel like eating at all. When Aunt Petunia left him meals outside his door, he tried to eat, but immediately felt like vomiting and left the meal almost untouched. Dumbledore's death affected him more than it affected others, and Harry wondered whether life would ever be the same.

As his birthday drew nearer, Harry started to think of the horcruxes, and who the bloody hell R.A.B might be. He wondered whether R.A.B destroyed all of the horcruxes, just the locket, or maybe neither. Perhaps Voldemort killed him before he got a chance to destroy any of the horcruxes—meaning that Harry had a long, almost impossible way to go.

A distant owl suddenly caught his attention and stopped his train of thought.

Harry smiled when he recognized this owl; it was from Remus, probably letting him know when he would be picked up.

_Harry,_

_How are you doing these days? Are you feeling any better? Please try to enjoy your summer. I know it is hard, with Dumbledore's death and everything that you have on your mind; but remember that Dumbledore wouldn't have wanted you to shut yourself away from everyone. I'm sure he told you the same thing when Sirius died. _

_I am writing to inform you that a select group of us will be picking you up the night of your birthday. We will arrive at 12 AM sharp, so be ready to leave. Make sure to say goodbye to your relatives; I am positive that deep down inside, they truly care for you. _(Harry snorted at the thought of his uncle caring for him—if Voldemort killed Harry, Vernon would be the first to throw a party). _What your uncle did to you was horrible, and I am sure he regrets it. _'Yeah Right,' Harry snorted.

_Looking forward to seeing you, _

_Moony_

Harry could not wait for his birthday. Time seemed to be passing by at a snails pace - much slower than his usual stay at the Dursleys. Perhaps it was because this time he knew he wouldn't be coming back or because he was anxious for what was waiting for him in the Wizarding World.

Harry spent his free time researching curses and spells that might help him on his journey. He did not bother doing his homework, since he knew he would not be returning to Hogwarts, even though the school was re-opening the upcoming year. Harry felt extremely guilty for Ron and Hermione not returning to school, but nonetheless he was grateful. He thought of Hermione, probably disappointed because she wouldn't be able to take her N.E.W.T exams, and Ron not being able to play more Quidditch. The thought of himself not being able to play Quidditch this year was quite horrifying too, but he knew he had to do this soon, or he might never succeed. The fact that Ron and Hermione were willing to give this up for him proved their loyalty to him.

He also thought of Ginny. He couldn't believe that he spent almost 6 years in Hogwarts not noticing her as more than Ron's little sister. And now that he had, he regretted not doing so sooner. He was terrified at the thought of not seeing her again, but immediately pushed this thought out of his mind; there was no reason to be even more depressed than he already is without having a reason to. _'Well,' _he thought to himself, _'you don't have a reason to. Yet.'_

Another week passed, and he soon found himself facing the day before his birthday. He looked up at the sky, hoping to see another owl flying towards his window. Indeed, an owl was heading towards his direction; it would probably be a letter from Ron, since he hadn't heard from him or Hermione ever since he arrived at Privet Drive. He wondered whether Dobby could have had anything to do with this.

He untied the scroll of parchment from the owl's leg, let the owl rest in Hedwig's cage, and began reading.

_Hey mate,_

_How's everything going? I hope those muggles are treating you well. Sorry I didn't write, we had some complications back at home. Death Eaters attacked our house, and demanded to know when you would arrive at the Burrow. I don't know what they were thinking, seeing as there was no chance of us telling them. Dad was injured, but the rest of us are fine. He's getting better though, he will be going back to work in a week. Just thought I'd let you know, the wedding is this weekend. Will you be able to make it?_

_Hope to see you real soon,_

_Ron_

Harry was slightly taken aback at his letter. He could not believe there was an attack on the Weasleys. And, what a surprise—it was because of him. At that moment, Harry made a decision; and he was determined not to let anyone change his mind.


	3. The Letter

The Letter

His trunk was packed; Hedwig was in her cage, he had his wand in his pocket and his broom in his hand. It was 2 AM; the Dursleys were all sound asleep. He quietly went downstairs and left his letter to Aunt Petunia on the kitchen table.

He then grabbed all of his things, remembering to take his invisibility cloak with him, and went outside into the cold night. He wished he had a sweatshirt with him, but he did not feel like opening his trunk; it would be a waste of time and every second that passed brought more danger onto him. Harry had thought about this all last night, hoping that he was making the right decision.

He cast a disillusionment charm on himself and his broom, remembering to also include his trunk and Hedwig's cage in case the invisibility cloak slipped off while flying. He then took off into the night, hoping that it would all go as planned.

After about an hour of flying, Harry saw the train station from below.

'_Well, at least I know where I am'._

He then made his way to Hogsmade. He planned on staying at the Shrieking Shack for the night, and then setting off in the morning to Grimmauld Place. Since the DE's somehow found out about the headquarters, the Order had abandoned Grimmauld Place for the time being (though Harry thought it was impossible for them to find out, since Dumbledore was the Secret Keeper, and he obviously couldn't tell them since he was dead). Harry decided to search the house for anything that could be helpful on his journey; after all, it was Sirius's old house.

The only thing he had to worry about was the Order finding out where he was, or else he was never going to be able to complete his task. Later, Harry found out that this was the last thing he should have worried about.

Petunia woke up with the sun shining on her face. She suddenly felt a lot happier than she usually did in the mornings; she concluded it was because of her talk with Harry and their developing relationship. Vernon had already set off to work and Dudley was at a friend's house, so she had the house for Harry and herself. This was the first day in almost a year that she did not wake up early to start cleaning. She assumed Harry was still asleep, so she took a quick shower and went downstairs to make some coffee.

After making her coffee and sitting down at the table to have breakfast, she suddenly noticed an envelope that had her name on it, which definitely was not present last night when she went to bed. Bemused, she opened the letter and began to read.

_Dear Aunt Petunia,_

_I know this might come as a surprise to you, so please read this letter carefully and give it your full attention to understand what I am doing. Last night I received a letter from Ron: Death Eaters attacked his house, and they demanded to know when I was coming to stay at the Burrow. Ron's dad has been injured, and it seems that he was injured badly. Notice how many people are getting hurt because of me—my parents, Sirius, Dumbledore, many of the Order members, and now Ron's dad. Ginny also suffered from Voldemort, and so had many other students. I decided I couldn't inflict my presence on anyone that I care about. Even you are in danger, and I can't let anything happen to you. The Death Eaters will know that I have left your house. I do not know how, but they have means of finding out. If anyone asks where I am, tell them I left without giving any notice and that I am currently somewhere in London. That will probably cause their search to vary all over London, and will hopefully give me enough time to find a new hiding place. Please do not worry about me; I promise you that I will take care of myself, and I can assure you that I will kill Voldemort. _

_Take care, and thank you for everything you've given me (even if you were a little too strict sometimes) ;)_

_Love,_

_Harry._

At this letter, Petunia was shocked; she did not know what to do, or who to tell. She remembered Harry saying something about a man named Remus Lupin, so she decided to contact him and let him know what Harry did. She will not let him risk his life because some stupid, so-called powerful wizard is a threat to the rest of the community. She and Harry had just started to get along, and she did not want to let go of that relationship. Petunia decided that this was time to reveal Windex, her owl. Windex had been staying in the shed in the backyard for as long as she could remember. She tried not to give anyone reasons to go to the shed, so that no one would find out about her owl; she did not want to give her up, nor did she want to answer awkward questions. She hurried off to the shed, where she also hid parchments and quills, and started writing.

_Dear Mr. Lupin,_

_I am sorry to bother you these days. However, I feel that this is a situation you might want to handle yourself. Harry left last night without giving any indication as to where he would be staying. He left a letter on the kitchen table, saying that he is out to find Voldemort, and kill him once and for all. He said he could not 'inflict his presence on anyone that he cared about', because more and more people seem to be getting hurt when he does; he said not to worry about him, and to tell anyone that asks where he is that he is staying in London (though I have a feeling this is not where he's staying). I am worried sick, but I do not know where to start looking nor do I know why he feels he should be looking for Voldemort when he hasn't even finished school yet. Please, please contact me if you find out anything about his whereabouts._

_Thank you,_

_Petunia Dursley._

And with that letter being sent, she went back to her kitchen hoping for a fast reply. She did the only thing she could think of to distract her mind from thinking about Harry: clean the kitchen, once more.


	4. Grimmauld Place, another Surprise

Grimmauld Place, another Surprise.

Back in Remus' house, Remus was lying down on the couch, his head resting on Tonks' lap. Suddenly, a brown unfamiliar owl pecked on the window, begging to be let in; Remus wondered who the letter might be from; after all, Harry's owl was white, and besides, he was picking Harry up tonight. Everyone else he kept in touch with was from the Order, and they usually used Patronuses to communicate (this was Dumbledore's clever way of communication in a method that prevented the message from reaching the wrong people).

He got up and opened the window, letting the owl inside; he took the parchment from the owl's leg, sat down on the couch, and began reading. The further he read, the wider his eyes became, full of fear and shock. He could not believe his eyes. He leapt up, and began conjuring Patronuses to communicate with the Weasleys and Minerva, and quickly wrote a letter to Petunia.

He swore to himself that he would not rest until he found Harry. He could not let Harry go through this alone. He let Tonks read the letter as she searched him with curious looks, and watched her expression become worried and shocked.

'_He's much too young; I don't know what he was thinking, taking off like that! He could get himself killed!' _Remus complained to himself

Remus did not know that as this thought crossed his mind, Harry nearly got killed.

When Remus received Petunia's letter, Harry long ago left for Grimmauld Place. When Harry finally arrived at Grimmauld Place, he was shocked. Kreacher was no where to be seen, and the place was a mess. It smelled horribly, probably of dead mice; there were still dishes in the sink, and quite a big pile of them; furniture was all over the place and turned upside down as if someone had put up a fight, and the living room was damp and sickeningly dusty. Harry shuddered in disgust and started to search for anything and everything. Suddenly, he spotted something sparkling behind a vase on a shelf. He pulled out his wand and drew nearer, careful not to make any noise as to not wake up the Portrait of Mrs. Black. As he drew nearer, he lowered his wand.

"Dumbledore's Pensieve!" he let out a low whistle.

He soon found a note, written by no other than Albus Dumbledore.

_Dear Harry,_

_If you are reading this, then you must be on your search for the horcruxes. And, as I expect, you are not here with your friends. I expected this from you, and I was prepared. I am leaving my Pensieve, with thoughts of mine that might be useful to you. I am also leaving Fawkes in your possession. I ask you to remember: not everything is the way it seems. There is more than meets the eye, and sometimes our eyes mislead us. Take that into consideration whenever you assume something. Consider this carefully, and maybe, with the help of this note, we will meet again during your quest for the horcruxes. I also leave you my house, you are free to enter it and take whatever you might find useful. I love you, Harry. Always remember that. Take care, be very careful, and, in the words of Alastor Moody- constant vigilance!_

_Love,_

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

Harry was very confused by this letter. Though he doubted he would ever meet Dumbledore again (that is, unless he died), and he did not know what Dumbledore meant by 'our eyes sometimes mislead us', he was touched by this letter and did not pay much attention to that part. Suddenly, as if someone ordered the bird to do so, Fawkes came to Harry out of nowhere.

"Fawkes! I'm so glad to see you! Have you been here all this time?"

Though Harry wasn't expecting an answer, Fawkes nodded.

"Wow," Harry whispered. Fawkes just smiled, his eyes twinkling. Somehow, those eyes reminded him of Dumbledore, and tears began running down Harry's face.

Harry spent the rest of the day examining Dumbledore's memories, some of which turned out to be very useful, as Dumbledore said they would be. This made him think of R.A.B., and he decided to search the house. And then, something clicked in his mind. 'The locket!'

Harry suddenly remembered spotting a heavy locket that no one could open, back in the summer previous to his 5th year. He also remembered Sirius mentioning his brother being a Death Eater, so he pulled out this memory and put it in the Pensieve. He then examined it, and gathered that Sirius thought Regulus was killed by Death Eaters on Voldemort's orders and that he got in too far and then panicked and tried to back out.

Though Harry did not know Regulus' middle name, everything fit together. The locket, Regulus' death being some 17 years previously, him being a Death Eater and trying to back out; it all fit, and Harry decided to go look for the locket right a way. Before he could head up the stairs, several loud cracks were heard outside, and about a dozen death eaters appeared in view. Harry immediately grabbed his wand, cast a nonverbal spell (Lumos—Harry was getting better at those), covered himself with his invisibility cloak, and went outside, taking Fawkes with him.

He spotted Lucius and Bellatrix outside, and silently walked up to them, relieving himself of his cloak. He stunned them both, and heard many other 'cracks' of apparating Death Eaters. Thinking all the other Death Eaters apparated, he began to send a Patronus to the ministry to come and arrest those two. Before he could do anything else, someone hit him from behind with a spell Harry did not recognize, and apparated away; Harry immediately dropped to the ground, unconscious.


	5. Grief on His Birthday

Grief on His Birthday

Harry did not know how long he was unconscious, but was relieved to find out that Lucius and Bellatrix were still there, both Stunned, and that the Ministry hadn't arrived yet. It must have been only a few minutes ago that the other Death Eaters disapparated. He tried to get up, but felt excruciating pain once he did.

'_Well, nothing new there. I'll just have to suck it up and go inside, before the ministry finds me.' _He was lucky the Death Eaters' faces were turned away from him as he Stunned them; otherwise, they would have seen him sneak into the house.

Indeed, the ministry arrived seconds after Harry stepped into Number 12, Grimmauld Place. Since the Aurors could not see Grimmauld Place, they did not suspect that Harry would be hiding inside. Harry was lucky that Shacklebolt hadn't come; otherwise he would have found Harry.

Harry had no idea what spell hit him; nor did he care. All he wanted was for the pain to go away, so that he could go look for the locket. Fawkes tried to heal Harry, but for some reason he could not. Harry read his spell books and tried to find anything that might be helpful in identifying the curse that hit him, but seeing as he did not remember what incantation the Death Eater had used and there was no physical, visible damage, he could not find anything.

'_Whatever this is, it will just have to heal by tomorrow, because this is a waste of time'_ Harry thought to himself.

He crawled to the couch in the living room, bringing both Fawkes and Hedwig with him, and immediately fell asleep.

The next morning, Remus received his usual copy of the _Daily Prophet_. Today, he, Tonks, Arthur, and Petunia were to go search for Harry. McGonagall was to come too, but she would have to return to Hogwarts if Harry was not found before school started. Remus did not know where to start looking, but was nevertheless determined to look anywhere and everywhere he could possibly think of. He dully opened his copy of the _Prophet_; the minute his eyes read the big, black heading on the first page, he almost fainted. He could not breathe, this was not happening! Tears started to appear in his eyes, making it harder to read the article.

**MALFOY AND LESTRANGE CLAIM TO HAVE KILLED HARRY POTTER**

_Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange, both Death Eaters and perhaps some of the most loyal servants of You-Know-Who, were captured last night around 11:00 PM in London. A Patronus was received in the shape of a stag from a mysterious person, telling the Ministry Authorities that there were two Death Eaters, Stunned, at a certain location unknown to the Prophet, and that about 10 more Death Eaters escaped before anything could be done. Aurors arrived at the place immediately; however, they only found two Death Eaters with no trace of the person who sent the Patronus. Later that night, after interrogating Malfoy and Lestrange with _**_Veritaserum_**_, they claimed they saw "another friend of theirs attack Harry Potter," causing the latter to drop dead on the ground. They could not, however, give details of where the boy disappeared to. The Ministry officially declares Harry James Potter's death on July 31, 1997, time of death unknown. May this day be a remembrance day, to pay respect to the Savior who gave up his life to help the Wizarding Community._

Remus could not believe his eyes. He was standing up, without realizing that he had done so while reading the article. He suddenly dropped to his knees, and cried. Tonks came running to see what happened, and when she saw the heading of the _Prophet_, she collapsed into Remus' arms and they both sat on the floor, sobbing.

Back at the Burrow, no one knew of the news. Arthur Weasley had informed his family of Harry's run-away, but the news of his death had not yet reached their ears. Ron and Hermione were shocked enough from his leaving, after he promised them that they could come with him. They were now being forced to go back to school, and resented that dearly. However, they decided not to fight over it. They would go to school, and ask McGonagall to let them go look for Harry; she would not tell their parents, they were sure of it. If and when they found Harry, they would give him a piece of their minds for running away without telling them.

That afternoon, Remus made a stop at the Burrow, hoping that the Weasleys and Hermione already knew of Harry's death. He couldn't bear to tell them himself, so he brought the _Prophet_ with him just in case. He knocked on the door, gave the password, and walked inside, his expression grave.

Molly Weasley immediately spotted that something was wrong. She called a family meeting right a way, and within a minute the family, including Percy (who had taken to apologizing for his prat-like behavior), Bill, Charlie, the Twins, Ginny, Ron, Arthur, and Hermione, were in the living room. Fleur had decided to go dress-shopping for her wedding, and was not present.

"Have any of you read the _Prophet_ within the last couple of days?" Lupin asked quietly.

"No, Remus, we haven't; we cancelled our subscription after they started writing all that junk about Dumbledore and Harry. Hermione is the only one who still receives it, but I don't think she had had a chance to read it because we have been very busy with preparations for the wedding," Molly stated, a curious expression on her face. At the mention of Harry's name, Lupin dropped his eyes.

"Is there something wrong? Did something happen?" Hermione questioned worriedly.

"I'm afraid I have bad news. Brace yourselves, because this isn't going to be easy."

They all looked up at him, their eyes showing fear and anxiousness.

"Well…he's…You see, it's like this…Well…What happened is…" Lupin could not bear to say it aloud.

"Remus, what happened? Is everything all right?" Arthur asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

"Here," Lupin replied, handing the _Prophet_ over to Molly.

Molly's eyes narrowed as tears began falling on her pale face. "No! It's not true! It can't be!" She threw the Prophet against the wall, and stormed upstairs, crying her heart out.

Ginny went to pick up the newspaper, but the second she picked it up and glanced at the heading, she dropped it, as if it was burning hot. She then picked it up again, reading it aloud, not allowing herself to cry in front of the others. As she read further, her voice diminished, until she could not finish her sentences properly. She suddenly burst out in tears; sobbing, she ran upstairs and threw herself on her bed, slamming the door behind her. This left Ron, Hermione, Arthur, Bill, Charlie, Percy, and Lupin in the living room. Ron picked up the _Prophet_ and finished the last couple sentences. "_The Ministry officially declares Harry James Potter's death on July 31, 1997, time of death unknown. May this day be a remembrance day, to pay respect to the Savior who gave up his life to help the Wizarding Community."_

"Oh my God! It was his birthday! Harry died on his 17th birthday!" Hermione cried.

They were all crying; Ron was embracing Hermione as she cried onto his shoulders, his own tears getting her hair wet; Arthur sat on his armchair, his face buried into his hands, not making any sound, though undoubtedly crying; Remus did the same, only his sobs were louder; Bill, Charlie, and Percy were standing silently, tears dripping down their faces.


	6. Horcruxes

Chapter 6

Horcruxes

Harry woke up the next morning completely oblivious to the article in the _Prophet_. To him it was a normal morning that would be spent looking for the locket. Fawkes suddenly put down a copy of the _Prophet_ on the kitchen table; Harry did not know why Fawkes would do such a random thin,; but he glanced at it nonetheless. Harry shrieked when he saw the article; he could not believe his eyes.

'_Dead! Dead? Where did they get that from? And on the influence on Veritaserum? What am I going to do? If I send anyone a message to correct them, they would know where I am…and if I don't, everybody would think I am dead, including the Order and Ron and Hermione…and Ginny! I can't let that happen!'_

Harry thought about this long and hard. He decided that it was not worth risking the Order finding out where he was, so he wasn't going to correct them. If the Order thought he was dead, and Voldemort thought he was dead, he wouldn't be in as much danger. Except then, Voldemort would try to take over the Wizarding World, not knowing that his prophecy wasn't fulfilled yet. Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing, Harry couldn't decide.

Harry went up the stairs and into a dark hallway. He immediately began searching the rooms. It didn't take him long to find Sirius' room, and Harry did not like being in there. It reminded him of his godfather, who could no longer spend time with him.

He assumed Regulus' room would be on the same floor, so he kept searching. After a few minutes, he found it.

The room was a mess. The floor could barely be seen through all the things thrown all over the place. He spotted a cabinet in the corner of the room, so he decided to check there first. He immediately found what he was looking for.

The locket, identical to the fake one, was covered with dust. This told Harry that it was there for quite a while. '_Seventeen years'_, he thought to himself.

He did not know what to do now. The memory in the Pensieve showed Dumbledore eliminating the curse from the ring, but Dumbledore used many nonverbal spells. Seeing as Harry had no chance of finding out what those spells were, he decided to try a simple spell, and hoped it would work.

"Specialis Revelio!" Harry said, curious as to what he would find.

Nothing happened, except for the locket cracking open. Harry was ready to start a duel with whatever would come out of the locket, but instead, all he found was a note.

He read it silently, astonished.

_To Whom It May Concern: This horcrux was destroyed in 1980. The other horcruxes are Marvolo's ring, Riddle's Diary, Hufflepuff's cup, his snake, Nagini, and I (yes, I am a horcrux). It was very painful to become a horcrux; it caused me to do irrational things, almost as though he possessed me. He did not know, however, that I already destroyed some of his horcruxes before he had made his final horcrux: me. I could not find Riddle's Diary or Marvolo's ring, and I did not succeed in killing Nagini, but the other horcruxes no longer exist. To whoever this is, I wish you the best of luck in defeating the Dark Lord. I plan on killing myself in order to make it easier for you to defeat Voldemort. The pain is too much to bear, and I could not continue in my search for the horcruxes even if I wanted to. The Dark Lord has no idea that any of his horcruxes are being destroyed. He has no means of finding out either, unless he goes looking for them. I am proud to be serving you, and I truly hope you defeat him and allow the Wizarding World to live in peace._

_Best of luck,_

_R.A.B_

Harry was dumbfounded. Could it really be that easy? All he had to do was kill Nagini, and then he could finally defeat Voldemort.

'_All?' _Harry thought to himself,_ 'Killing Nagini is hard enough. How the bloody hell am I supposed to find her!'_

He then evaluated the situation, and decided it wasn't that bad_. 'It could have been a lot harder. I should be thankful I don't have the other horcruxes to go after, or it would be impossible to kill Voldemort, since I had no idea how to destroy them or where to look for them._

Harry spent the next few weeks practicing Occlumency and other kinds of spells that might be helpful when he finally met Voldemort. After a couple of weeks of hard work and practice, he somehow got access to Voldemort's mind, and he could not believe this was turning out to be so easy.

"_My loyal Death Eaters; we have gathered today to celebrate. Anyone have an idea as to what the cause is?"_

"_The death of the Potter boy," sneered Malfoy, "…and I'm guessing Nagini would be staying in Azkaban with the dementors from now on, since her presence is no longer needed?"_

"_Yes Malfoy, she will. I needed her with me for reasons that aren't any of your business, but now that my only true threat is gone, I no longer need to keep her safe with me. No one can harm her near the dementors anyway; the Potter boy is the only one who would be foolish enough to try, and as we found out earlier, he is already dead."_

"_That sure is a reason to celebrate," grinned Crabbe, "he was such a pain to deal with!"_

"_Precisely…Christmas has come early this year…"_

"_Sir, you a Buddhist, not a Christian," said Crabbe._

"_Avada Kedavra!" _

'_This is too easy; first all the horcruxes are gone, and now I know where to find Nagini? It's too good to be true!' _

After much thought of whether he should risk his life so soon or wait a while, Harry decided to set off to Azkaban. Tomorrow school would start, and everybody would be much too distracted to notice anything that happened at Azkaban. Especially since everyone thought he was dead.


	7. Depression and Victory

**Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to update…hope you like this chapter!**

**I already have like the next three chapters ready, so the posting should be a lot faster.**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 7

Depression and Victory

Normally, they would all be excited for the new term. Ron and Hermione were in their seventh and final year, and Ginny was in her sixth year, a should-be-exciting one indeed.

However, this year was different. None of them felt like going to school; it had been a month since Harry had died, but they were still depressed. The Burrow no longer had the cheerful aura it usually did; rarely would anyone smile or tell a joke.

Ron and Hermione barely came out of their rooms, except when they had the chance to clean the house or do something that would distract their minds from Harry. Hermione burst into tears every night before she went to bed, and Ron would hurry to her room and embrace her in a hug, silently crying while doing so. It was similar to a daily routine; every day at night they would go upstairs and cry on each other's shoulders. They did not feel comfortable talking to anyone about their feelings, not even to each other. They didn't need to; the tears said everything on their own.

Ginny was a different story. She hadn't spoken a word to anyone ever since the night she found out about Harry's death. She had no one to comfort her; no one at all to tell her things would be ok, because she knew they wouldn't. Harry was the one who should kill Voldemort; he deserved to do it. But now Harry was gone, and she was afraid to think of what would become of the Wizarding World.

Ginny pushed her parents away when they tried to talk to her; she didn't want to be mean, but she couldn't talk about this, no one would understand her. Harry was her true love--her first and true love. And now he was gone, and she was left alone. She felt as if she could not love anyone else ever again. She came out of her room only when she absolutely needed to; the bathroom and meals were the main reasons. Other than those rare occasions, she would stay in her room, lie down on her bed, and bite her pillow to prevent herself from screaming in misery.

And now, they had to go to school. Though Ron and Hermione could stay home, since they were of age and could do what they wanted, they didn't think it would be a reasonable thing to do. At least school would distract them; if they stayed at the Burrow, they would have 365 days of nothing worthwhile to do, and eventually the depression they were trying to avoid would catch on to them.

Carrying their luggage and their pets, the three of them walked through the barrier that led to Platform 9 ¾. They bid goodbye to Ron's parents and got on the train.

Ron and Hermione had to fulfill their duties as the new Head Boy and Girl of Gryffindor, so Ginny went to search for an empty compartment; when she finally found one, she went inside and shut the door behind her. Now she could be alone, no one would bother her. Malfoy was gone, and Crabbe and Goyle wouldn't dare bother her without Malfoy with them. The other Slytherins were probably busy with their evil plans for the year, so she had the whole ride to Hogwarts to herself…or so she thought. The compartment door suddenly slid open and she was surprised to see none other than Remus Lupin standing in front of her.

"Mr. Lupin! What are you doing here?" inquired Ginny, suspicious of whether or not he is an imposter.

"Hello Ginny. Professor McGonagall hired me as the new professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts, so it's Professor Lupin from now on, young lady," Lupin said. "But when were alone you can call me Remus," he added, smiling warmly at the girl.

"How do I know it's really you?" she asked, still eyeing him as if he would turn into a Death Eater any second now.

"Does Moony ring a bell?" he smiled at her.

"Remus! I'm so glad you're teaching us again! We'll finally have a decent Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! And face it; you're the only good teacher of DADA that has taught me in all my years in Hogwarts."

"Yes, I dare say that's true…one dead, though you didn't have him as a teacher, one lost his memory, one lost his soul, another chased off by a herd of centaurs, and a greasy git who betrayed us all…not the best selection, eh?" Lupin smiled weakly. The shock of Snape having killed Dumbledore was still present. '_And_ _maybe, if Snape hadn't betrayed us, Dumbledore would still be alive, Harry wouldn't have set off on his own, and he would still be alive…this is all Snape's fault!' _Lupin suddenly became depressed at this thought, and did not know that Ginny was watching him. He knew Snape wasn't personally responsible for Harry's death, but he had to blame it on someone. He then remembered that Harry used to blame things on Snape too, and smiled.

Ginny, however, seemed more depressed than she was when she got on the train.

"Are you all right?" Lupin asked worriedly.

Tears started to run down her face, and suddenly, she did something that very much surprised her.

"I can't handle it anymore, Remus. I can't go to school. I have too many memories with him here, I can't be here knowing that he isn't coming back." At this point Ginny could not speak any more. Her knees could not hold her weight anymore, and she fell down to the floor, sobbing. She didn't know what caused her to tell Remus this. She hadn't spoken to anyone about Harry, yet she just told Remus how she was feeling.

Remus knelt down, picked her up, and sat down with her, embracing her in a hug.

"Everything will be ok Ginny, I promise. I miss him too," he said quietly, holding back his tears. He could not cry in front of her; he needed to be strong, both for her and himself.

"How is it going to be ok? We have no chance now! Look at how much Harry has suffered: first, his parents were killed, then he had to live with those horrible muggles, he fought Voldemort and Death Eaters several times, not to mention being tortured, he constantly had awful nightmares because of Voldemort, then Sirius died, then Dumbledore died! Almost everyone in his life that he cared for died in his lifetime! And now, he's dead! We have no one else to help us, Remus. Harry was our last hope. He was _my _last hope. Maybe he wouldn't have succeeded in killing Voldemort. Maybe it would have been someone else, someone from the Order. But Harry was a part of this war, and now that he is gone, I don't think there is anyone else who could defeat Voldemort."

"I understand how you feel. I really do Ginny, but you need to be strong. I know it hurts. I know how depressed you're feeling. He was like a son to me: I lost a family member. My only one left, might I mention. But you have your friends; you have Hermione, and Luna, and Neville, and your brothers, your whole family; and, you have me. I will be there for you, and if you ever need to talk, you know where my classroom is. In fact, how about we meet every other night? It doesn't have to be for a long time, I know you are busy with Quidditch and your hectic schedule with N.E.W.T. classes. Just for a short time, we could have tea and talk."

Ginny nodded silently, tears still streaming down her face. She didn't know what it was, but Remus always seemed to know how to soothe her.

Ron and Hermione had the same reaction that Ginny had had when they found out Lupin was teaching again- shock. Nonetheless, the news made them feel better. They had plenty of Order members they could trust at the school. But now they had two they could really talk to—Lupin and McGonagall.

The train ride to Hogwarts went by a lot faster and much pleasanter than it would have been if Lupin weren't with them. He kept their minds away from thinking about Harry and Dumbledore by distracting them with information about the Order, after casting a few charms to make sure no one could eavesdrop or interrupt them. They finally arrived at the school, and went into one of the carriages. Lupin had come with them, and they all sat silently on their way to Hogwarts, each with their own thoughts.

When they entered the Great Hall, they promised Lupin they would stop by his classroom tomorrow, and went to sit at the Gryffindor table; Lupin sat down next to McGonagall. The table seemed especially quiet; everyone knew about Harry's death, and some were still mourning Dumbledore's death. McGonagall certainly did not seem happy, though she tried to hide it by smiling at the first years and welcoming them to the school. The first years might not have noticed, but Ginny, Ron, and Hermione all noticed that McGonagall wasn't the same.

Not surprisingly, the Great Hall was covered with black drapes.

"To our newcomers, welcome, and to our older students, welcome back," she smiled at them; at least she tried to.

"Students should know that the Forbidden Forest is strictly forbidden, hence the name, and no magic is allowed in the halls. See Mr. Filch if you have any questions, though I truly advise you not to."

Short laughs were heard amongst the students, but they quickly died away. It seemed like McGonagall was trying to bring back some of the spirit by speaking like Dumbledore…it was somewhat working.

"As many of you know, this is going to be a hard year. I am not talking about your schoolwork, but about the war. Vo…Vold…Voldemort has returned." Many people flinched when they heard his name, but McGonagall ignored them. Eventually, they would have to get used to it. "This should be obvious to you. Dumbledore, the greatest headmaster the school has ever seen, had died last year at the hands of one of our professors; as you might notice, Snape is no longer at the school with us." She did not bother to use the word Professor; she no longer had any respect for him.

"I would like to start the feast by bidding farewell to a true hero. Not only was he an excellent student and the greatest Seeker Hogwarts has seen in years; he was brave, courageous, and constantly risked his life to save others. He gave us all hope, though for a while many of you did not believe him. He stood up for what he believed in, and even after being tortured by that awful Umbridge person, he did not back away from his position. He kept his head up and did all he could to convince the world that his stories were true. And now, this person is gone. He was murdered by Death Eaters, and…I…" McGonagall started crying at these words. Lupin, who was sitting next to her, hugged her, tried to comfort her-but tears were seen on his face too. "To Harry Potter," he continued for her, and they all drank from their goblets. Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were all crying, but forced themselves to stop the second the feast had begun. They couldn't do this to Harry; they had to be strong…for Harry, and themselves.

The rest of the feast went by in a considerably happier mood…at least, for most people. The ones that knew Harry weren't as happy. A part of Gryffindor was missing; a part of _them_ was missing; and they didn't know how to fix it.

Meanwhile, far, far away, Harry was on his way to Azkaban. Though Harry did not have his Apparating license, he decided to Apparate to Azkaban, since he did not know how to get there by flying, and he certainly did not fancy going to Hogsmeade to buy a map.

He concentrated hard on his destination, determination, and…he forgot the last D. '_Well, I have to get there either way, so I'm going to pretend like I've never heard of the three D's._' He concentrated hard on Azkaban; it only took him three seconds to get there. He was surprised he didn't land in Knockturn Alley or one of those Dark places, but he didn't complain.

Azkaban was not a pretty sight. It was freezing outside, the building looked like it hasn't been inhabited in thousands of years, and it was of course surrounded by water. Harry put on his invisibility cloak, letting Fawkes rest on his shoulder, and walked towards the prison.

He then went inside, and shuddered. It was cold in there too; even colder, if that was possible. He could feel the dementors; hear the rattling noise they made when they were searching for souls. He clutched his wand even tighter, and went upstairs. Where would Nagini be?

His answer to that question was on the topmost floor. There she was, surrounded by tens of dementors. Harry thought of the happiest memory he had-him and Ginny together-and bellowed, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" A silver stag burst out of his wand and attacked the dementors in front of him, whom were already making their way towards Harry. The stag chased them out of the building, allowing Harry to finally encounter Nagini.

Harry thought of everyone that had died because of Voldemort: his parents, Sirius, Dumbledore, Order members…and all of the innocent lives of his friends' parents Voldemort took, mercilessly. He then yelled "Avada Kedavra!" and killed the snake. Harry was relieved: he didn't know what to expect, and didn't expect it to be this easy.

Indeed, as though proving his thoughts, Voldemort's hologram appeared in the room, making it not so easy anymore. Harry started to panic, having no idea what to do next.

"So, I encounter you again, Harry Potter. You have been a pest ever since you were born. I will not fail this time. Avada Kedavra!" Voldemort's hologram bellowed, pointing its wand at Harry.

Harry did not know a hologram would be able to do this. He was not even sure this was a hologram. He did the only thing he could thing of: duck.

Harry cast a shield charm on himself and Fawkes, while trying to get Fawkes to move out of his way. Fawkes kept flying in front of Harry, trying to protect him from the spells that were cast at him. He then cast a special shield charm, which he learned about through his studying over the summer, and began dueling with Voldemort's "hologram". He ducked many curses, cast a few himself…and after a while, he was getting desperate. He concluded that there was one thing left to do. He was going to have to do this; it was the only way to kill this hologram--at least, the only way he could think of. Eventually, he would become a murderer. He could become the victim, but he preferred not to think of that option.

Harry concentrated on his anger towards the Dark Wizard standing in front of him; again, he thought about all the people that were killed because of Voldemort; he thought of Lestrange, Malfoy, Wormtail, and Snape…all of Voldemort's Death Eaters…and after he felt so angry he would explode soon…

"Avada Kedavra!" Harry screamed with all his might, not sure if his screaming was helping or not. Voldemort's hologram vanished into thin air, and all that was left was Nagini's skin. The remains of the snake turned glowing white, then black again, and then vanished. This part of his soul was destroyed; Voldemort's horcruxes were destroyed. And then, Harry saw something that very much surprised him; more like, someone. He was shocked, speechless, it couldn't be true. It was just a figment of his imagination, he was sure of it. It's probably because he missed him so much; he can't be standing there, he's dead. Harry saw him die! But, that person was there; and he was alive.


	8. He's Not Dead

**Hey guys! Sorry it took me so long to update. I hope you all like how the story is developing. Thanks to my beta Sydney for editing my story, I don't know what I'd do without her. Also thanks to my other beta, Veronika. R&R!**

Chapter 8

He's Not Dead

"I'm going crazy. Bloody hell, I'm imagining things," Harry contemplated his sanity out loud to himself. He then closed his eyes, expecting the person to disappear, to prove that it was his imagination. But when he opened his eyes again, he was still standing there, smiling at him.

"I see you beat me on this one; I didn't expect you to get here so early, I thought you would at least wait until a month after the school year started; after all, you still have the other horcruxes to find. I must say I was surprised to see you here."

"P...P...Professor Dumbledore? Is that really you?" Harry asked, confused.

"Yes Harry, it is me. You are not going crazy," Dumbledore said, chuckling.

"It can't be you. You're dead. This is one of Voldemort's nasty tricks, it has to be. Making me believe my headmaster is alive, getting my hopes up, and then crushing them again. You're probably some Death Eater who wants to do me in. I don't trust you one bit," Harry said, trying to keep his voice calm.

"Harry, Harry, remember my letter? There is more than meets the eye!" Dumbledore once again smiled at him.

"How do I know this isn't an imposter? I haven't been acquainted with Mad-Eye Moody for nothing, you know."

"We went looking for the locket last year, before the incident at the school...and besides, how would I know of the horcruxes?" Dumbledore half explained, half questioned, trying to prove that it really is him.

"How did you...what did you….where did you…" Harry didn't know what to ask first.

"Exactly the questions I thought you would ask," Dumbledore grinned at him. "Well, it's a long story. Let's go back to Grimmauld Place, we can talk there. Ahem…since I don't think you can legally Apparate yet…ahem...though I know you can…you might want to side-along Apparate with me this time," Dumbledore said, looking amused and slightly entertained. Harry smiled at him, and grabbed Dumbledore's arm, which wasn't burnt anymore, and they Apparated away.

When they arrived at Grimmauld Place, they ran inside the house, and shut the door behind them. Fawkes sat on Dumbledore's shoulder, and they all sat down on the couch.

"So…" Dumbledore started, "I'm guessing you want to know what I'm doing here? Or what I'm doing alive?"

"Yes, that definitely would be helpful to keeping myself sane," Harry replied.

"Well…it started when Professor Snape made the Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa Malfoy. Of course, Severus told me about it right away. He was to protect Malfoy and help him with whatever task he was to complete on his master's orders. His task was to kill me," Dumbledore said gently. "As you might remember, he made various attempts; the necklace, the poisoned wine from Professor Slughorn's office, and that night we went to look for the locket. He failed all of them, so Severus had to do it for him. A couple weeks before that night, Severus and I argued. I made him promise that he would fake my death for me, and he claimed that it was too much to do, that he was risking his name and that he would be on the run from then on; he knew he and Draco would have to go into hiding, and he despised that thought. Nonetheless, he agreed to do it. That time came, and Severus knew his time was up; he had to do it that night, or else one of the Death Eaters would really kill me…and he would die for not completing the Unbreakable Vow. The Vow is a tricky thing…but if it _seems_ as if the Vow is completed, and everyone believes it, then the Vow is considered to be completed and all responsibility of the people involved cancels. Therefore, if the world thought I was dead, Severus would be freed of his responsibility, and then I could then come back."

Harry didn't know what to say to this; it was too much information to process, and none of it made sense.

"But…but Snape…he cast the Killing Curse on you!" Harry exclaimed; his expression was filled with disgust, "how come you're not…dead?"

"Again, you are forgetting what I wrote in my letter. _There is more than meets the eye, and sometimes the eyes mislead us. _It seemed as though he killed me, but he really didn't. You see, non-verbal spells are much more powerful than the verbal ones. If you say one spell, but think another, the verbal spell is automatically cancelled. He said Avada Kedavra, but what he was thinking was actually Expelliarmus. That's why I blasted into the air; didn't you find it unusual that I didn't just drop dead, especially after being so weak? His Expelliarmus was just extremely powerful, so he blasted me out of sight, which gave me time. Enough time to transform a rock into the body of myself, and escape. I wasn't a transfiguration teacher for nothing," Dumbledore said, smiling at Harry, who looked completely lost in thoughts. "I left the horcrux with my transformed body, because I knew you would come take it."

"Does anyone know that you're alive?' Harry asked, but he was sure he already knew the answer.

"No; no one but you, Severus, Fawkes, and I," he smiled at Harry. "And I must ask you to keep this a secret."

"I promise Sir, I won't tell anyone. But…how did you know that I was alive? I mean, the article in the _Daily Prophet_ reported me dead, and I didn't correct them. The whole Wizarding World thinks I am dead, including Voldemort and his Death Eaters."

"Dead! They think you are dead! Goodness gracious, Harry, that's one risky thing to do!"

"I know Sir, but if I told anyone I was still alive they would never let me go search for the horcruxes…especially since they don't know about them, do you really think the Order would let me go on my own to look for something without them knowing where I am or what I'm looking for?" Harry then handed him the article in the _Prophet_ and Dumbledore began reading.

"Death Eaters attacked you? _Here?_ But how? I am the Secret Keeper!"

"I wondered the same thing…but I guess once it seems as if one is dead, that is cancelled, just like the Unbreakable Vow. The attack wasn't bad, one of the Death Eaters hit me with a spell that I couldn't recognize, and I couldn't find the type of injury in any kind of book, so I couldn't heal it. It still hurts occasionally, but nothing serious."

Dumbledore didn't like the sound of this; he didn't like it at all.

"Harry, please show me where the curse hit you," Dumbledore said, sounding worried.

"I don't know where it hit me, I don't think it really hit me anywhere in specific… but my whole body ached after it, it was worse than the Cruciatus," Harry said, confused as to how this might be relevant. He didn't want to worry Dumbledore; he was just glad Dumbledore was alive, and would be with him. He missed him so much, and Dumbledore's letter, the one he found about a month ago, really touched him. _I love you Harry, always remember that. _Now, Harry understood that they always had a relationship closer than one of a student and a headmaster. And he now realized that he truly loved Dumbledore. He was a father…or a grandfather…whichever one, he was a parental role in his life, and that meant more to him than he could ever explain.

"Harry…you shouldn't feel this way. I _want _to be concerned with what happens to you, I care about you. Worrying about someone isn't a bad thing. And, Harry—I really do love you. I've always loved you, son or grandson. And I'm glad you feel that I am a parental role in your life; it is what I intended to be."

Harry blushed; he wasn't expecting Dumbledore to use Legilimency on him, yet he wasn't completely surprised.

"Harry…I want you to tell me exactly what happened the night you were attacked. It's important that we find out what hit you because something coming from a Death Eater can't be that simple as to do almost no harm."

"Well…I was Stunning Malfoy and Lestrange, and I thought all the other Death Eaters were gone…but there was one more, and he did something when my back was turned to him…so Malfoy and Lestrange were stunned with their backs to me, they didn't see what happened. The Death Eater said something like 'muerto' and then I passed out. I don't quite remember anything else…all I know is that I woke up a few minutes after that happened only to find Malfoy and Lestrange still Stunned. I went back into the house and went to sleep, because I couldn't find anything about that spell."

Dumbledore looked at him sadly. "I'm afraid I do know what that spell is. It is the only spell that has a Spanish origin, 'muerto' meaning death. It causes the victim to die within a year of the spell being cast, unless the victim kills someone first. That is the only way the victim can live."

"Then…that means…that I _have_ to kill Voldemort within the next _year_?" Harry asked, though somehow he already knew the answer to that question.

"I'm afraid so," Dumbledore replied gravely. Long silence broke between the two, until Dumbledore asked, "So, how have you been doing on your search for the horcruxes?" trying to divert Harry's attention from the newly learned fact.

"Actually…it's been easy; well, easier than I thought it would be. You probably don't know about this yet…but the horcrux we got that night was a fake one. It was simply a replica of the real one. A person called R.A.B. whom I later found out to be Regulus Black, Sirius's brother, found it first and destroyed it. He left the real locket here, in Grimmauld place, but he already destroyed Voldemort's soul from it. All that was there was a note, since he already destroyed that horcrux. I still have it somewhere, but basically it said that Hufflepuff's cup was destroyed, and that he, himself, was a horcrux; he destroyed the locket in 1980. He did not manage to find Riddle's Diary or Marvolo's ring, and he did not succeed in killing Nagini, but he ended up killing himself, meaning he destroyed one more of Voldemort's horcruxes. Since I destroyed the Diary, and you destroyed the ring, the only thing that was left for me to do was kill Nagini…and I did. So now, all that's left is to kill Voldemort. And I still have no idea how I'm going to do that," Harry added, sounding depressed.

Dumbledore looked dumbfounded; never, under any circumstances, did he expect this. Nevertheless, he was relieved at the thought of all of the horcruxes being destroyed.

"Well done, Harry! You have done an extraordinary job, I am very proud of you! I will help you train for the final battle; don't worry about that right now. Lemon Drop?" he asked, his eyes twinkling once more.

"Thanks," Harry replied while he took the Lemon Drop from his professor.

"And… Harry?" Dumbledore added.

"Yes, professor?

"Thank you," Dumbledore said, smiling at the boy.

"For what, sir?"

Dumbledore just kept smiling at him, giving him a figure-it-out look.

At that moment, just before falling asleep, Harry realized what Dumbledore had been talking about. Harry truly was 'Dumbledore's man through and through,' and nothing could ever change that.


	9. Life Goes On, Until Something Stops It

**Oh wow, this took a long time to update. I was working on my other story, One Heck of a Year, and then I became SO busy with schoolwork I had almost no time to write. But, I'm proud to say that I finished chapter 9 of this story, and I'm almost positive that chapter 10 will be the last chapter (though a long one, hopefully!)**

**Enjoy, and please keep reviewing!**

Chapter 9

Life Goes On, Until Something Stops It.

The next day was spent with Harry catching up with Dumbledore. They talked about everything that happened ever since Dumbledore's "death." Harry told Dumbledore about what happened over the summer, his uncle beating him, Lupin coming to his help, how he decided to run away in order to protect the others, his conversation with his Aunt, and anything else he could think of. Dumbledore told him about his months in hiding, a more in-depth story of why he had to have Snape fake his death, and more about his life in general. Harry asked him all his questions he wanted to ask him at the end of his 6th year and couldn't, such as where he learned to speak with merpeople. Apparently Dumbledore had to live in the great lake for a month and Mad-Eye Moody had transformed him into a merperson.

Harry and Dumbledore spent their time researching useful spells. In one of the books, "_Ancient Spells and Jinxes for Enemies Only"_ by _Shatkil Brincklhoff_, they found a highly useful spell which blinded the enemy for 15 seconds, allowing adequate time to escape if necessary. Another spell was the 'A_penso'_ spell, which played the enemy's thoughts in a sort of movie clip so that the other can foresee what the enemy is trying to do. Another spell was one that put extra gravity force on the enemy so that he will be pulled to the ground and will not be able to get up. And so the days went on, and with each day they found more and more spells for Harry to use in his final combat with Voldemort. Harry was slowly mastering them and was getting much better at Occlumency now that Snape wasn't the one teaching him. He also gained some skill in Legilimency, which was helpful because now he would also be able to tell if Voldemort was trying to trick him.

Back at Hogwarts classes were going very slowly for Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. No Harry, no Dumbledore, meaning absolutely no cheerfulness…though they were dealing with the absence of Snape and Draco pretty well. Classes went by so slowly--even Hermione stopped listening to Professor Binns. One day McGonagall approached Ron and Hermione after her class.

"Ms. Granger, Mr. Weasley, if you would please come up to my desk," she said.

Ron and Hermione walked over to McGonagall's desk. When they reached it, she looked up at them, and asked, "How are you two doing?"

"Ok," they mumbled, and looked down at their feet.

"I can obviously tell you're not…you shouldn't worry though, it's perfectly natural to feel depressed. Just make sure you're coping with it, not keeping things bottled up…and if you ever need to talk to anyone…ahem… I'm always here for you…I know I don't come off as a conversational person, but you can try me; I'm a very good listener."

Ron and Hermione looked up at her and smiled; Ron said, "Thanks…we might take you up on that offer."

McGonagall smiled at them, and before she knew it, her eyes became very watery and it was very hard for her to see her notes. The two in front of her, so innocent yet experienced so much on behalf of Harry…and Dumbledore, how she missed him…

Ron and Hermione saw that McGonagall was crying, and Hermione went over to her side and put an arm over her, patting her comfortingly. McGonagall suddenly grabbed Hermione and pulled her into a hug.

Hermione, not knowing what to do, hugged her back consolingly. Ron stood beside them, staring awkwardly. He never saw McGonagall so emotional; that is, unless she was furious with a student.

McGonagall dried up her tears and said, "I'm sorry, I cry too much. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

Hermione and Ron looked at each other with an understanding look. Hermione then looked at McGonagall and asked, "Professor…would you maybe want to come to Hogsmeade with us…in two weeks…to talk?"

She wasn't sure if it was proper to invite a teacher to Hogsmeade with them, but at that time it seemed appropriate. The second Hermione saw McGonagall's expression, she immediately regretted asking her. McGonagall looked like she was about to cry even harder.

"Ms. Granger…Thank you! You don't know how much that means to me, to know that I still have someone to confide in, though my husband is gone…Thank you!

"You're welcome, Professor; it is our pleasure," Hermione answered her warmly.

"Wait…I think I heard you wrong…did you just say your husband is gone?"

"Yes, Mr. Weasley, Professor Dumbldore and I were married," she admitted.

Ron looked shocked; Hermione, however, did not seem surprised at all.

"You knew, I assume, Ms. Granger?" McGonagall asked her with a smirk.

"Yes, of course…you two were kind of obvious," she said gently. She didn't know if McGonagall felt comfortable talking about Dumbledore openly.

"No they weren't! I never knew about this! How did you find out?" Ron asked her, completely astonished that there was a love story happening right under his nose for the past 6 years and he hadn't noticed. Hermione rolled her eyes at him and continued to speak to McGonagall.

"Ok, so we will see you at dinner Professor McGonagall…take care."

"Thank you, same to you two…and, please, you can call me Minerva when we're not around other students," she smiled at them.

Ron looked as if he didn't know teachers had first names; Hermione just smiled at McGonagall, and together she and Ron left McGonagall's classroom.

Harry and Dumbledore we're enjoying a nice cup of tea after a long day of hard work.

"Harry…I was wondering, maybe it would be a good idea if you tell everyone you're still alive…at least your friends, and the Weasleys, and maybe Professor McGonagall and  
Remus…you miss them Harry, I know you do, and you know they miss you too," Dumbledore said gently.

Harry looked as though he was seriously contemplating the matter, but sounded quite resolute when he answered, "Albus, you know I can't do that. If anyone finds out I am alive, there is a chance that Voldemort will also find out, and then we will both be in danger again. We will both be better off if no one knows…but, I am open to compromises…if you tell, I'll tell," he smirked at his favorite teacher, who was becoming more of a father these days, despite his old age.

Dumbledore looked at Harry, amazed with his astute answers. He knew how much it pained Harry to be away from his friends, from his loved ones…

"Harry, I can't do that either…I can't even tell my own wife, for she will be in great danger if anyone even suspects us. It can't be done safely."

"Your wife? You mean…Professor McGonagall…you were…a couple?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Yes, Harry, Professor McGonagall and I were married; for quite a long time, might I add."

"You must miss her...I've only been with Ginny for a year, and I miss her like crazy…I can't imagine what it's like to separate from someone you were with for almost half of your life…"

They looked at each other sympathetically, but quickly changed subjects as to not depress themselves. Dumbledore had just offered Harry a lemon drop, when suddenly Dumbledore's wand started vibrating; soon enough, his wand was levitating itself in the air, glowing brighter and brighter with every minute that passed. Dumbledore looked at the wand gravely, and Harry looked at Dumbledore, comprehension slowly taking over him.

Suddenly, the wand fell back to the floor, and two snakes erupted from its tip. Dumbledore looked at Harry, and said, "Harry…the time has come. "


	10. Victory Blends with Defeat

**Hey guys!**

**I've been working on this chapter for a long time, I hope you like the result! This is the last chapter of this story…but no fear! A sequel will soon be here! R&R!**

Chapter 10

Victory Blends with Defeat

Harry looked up at Dumbledore, and immediately knew what this meant; he silently got his invisibility cloak and his wand, and side-along Apparated with Dumbledore to wherever Dumbledore was taking him.

They reappeared at the Ministry; it was the same room with the veil, the one where Sirius had died…how Harry hated that room…

Dumbledore turned to Harry with concerned eyes, his eyes watery and full of sadness.

"Harry…I'm afraid this is it. I will be there with you to assist you, I won't let you die. Just be strong, don't give up. Think about your parents; think about Sirius, the Wizarding World; you are fighting for everything and everyone that suffered because of Voldemort," Dumbledore tried to encourage him.

Harry just smiled weakly at Dumbledore, fearing whatever was awaiting him.

Dumbledore was just embracing Harry in a big, comforting, fatherly hug when suddenly strong wind forces were felt. A tornado was formed at the entrance of the room, and soon it turned into one black blur; Voldemort then appeared out of nowhere.

"Ah, Harry Potter…we meet again…and, what more, for the last time!" Voldemort scorned, but then froze when he saw Dumbledore. "What have we here? Dumbledore, eh? Alive and well? I knew Potter was alive, but I must admit I did not suspect you… Here to protect his favorite boy from getting killed? Not going to work this time, _Professor_," Voldemort continued. "In fact, why don't we make this entertaining?"

He cast a spell around himself and Harry, leaving Dumbledore on his own. Harry and Voldemort were now in an unbreakable glass bubble; no one and nothing could break or interfere with the bubble; what went on inside was only to be determined by the two people inside it. The people outside the bubble could only hear whatever went on inside.

"Hmm…why don't we make this a bigger gathering?" he asked mockingly. Harry made to cast a spell on him, but Voldemort simply flicked his wand and Harry's wand flew right into his hands. "Not yet, Potter…more people need to come. No, not my loyal Death Eaters…none of them tonight…but I was thinking of inviting _your_ dear friends, so they can watch your death," he smiled his evil smile at Harry, his snakelike face expressing pure hatred. "Let's see…the werewolf and his lover…the two Weasleys, those blood-traitors… of course, your Mudblood friend…perhaps Professor McGonagall, too…anyone in particular you want to invite?" he said in his sweetest voice, sounding almost like Umbridge. Dumbledore was now so close to the bubble his nose was touching it, desperately trying to think of ways he could get Harry out of there; though Harry is the one who is supposed to kill Voldemort, if there's no one else to help him it might be more complicated than he anticipated.

With a snap of Voldemort's fingers, everyone he summoned appeared in the room. They didn't know how they got there or how someone managed to summon them from Hogwarts, but they immediately spotted Harry in the bubble, Voldemort smiling at all them. How they got there didn't matter anymore. They all ran towards the bubble, but immediately froze when they saw Dumbledore. McGonagall fell down to the floor and started crying, muttering, "No, this can't be happening to me…go away, leave me alone…" Dumbledore saw her, ran over to her, and picked her up, hugging her and showered her with kisses.

"My love…I am here now," he said comfortingly.

"But…how…when…where?" she asked weakly.

"No time to explain," he said sadly, pointing over to Harry. Everyone else, who had been staring at the couple re-uniting, shocked, turned their attention to Harry.

"He's alive!" everyone cried almost in unison.

Dumbledore's twinkle was gone from his eyes. "Yes…he is…I will explain later."

Everyone, still shocked and speechless, turned once again to face Harry and Voldemort.

"How nice it is to encounter all of you on these very unfortunate circumstances. You will soon find that it was a foolish mistake to rise against me. The bubble surrounding me and dear Mr. Potter is an unbreakable glass bubble, shielding us from any outside spells. If any of you try to break the glass using some sort of spell, the spell will simply rebound itself onto yourselves. I wouldn't try that if I were you, but be my guest."

Voldemort then turned to Harry and smiled at him. Harry looked like he was about to explode out of anger.

"Ah, but you can't blame me for doing this. You and I both know that I was bound to kill you sooner or later…sooner rather than later, the way I see it."

"You're not going to win, Tom. Your horcruxes are destroyed." Harry knew he was provoking Voldemort, and Voldemort could kill him any second. But he didn't care.

"WHAT? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?" Voldemort raged. "HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW ABOUT THEM?"

"Oh, I'm smarter than I seem," Harry mocked, using Occlumency all the same. "They're destroyed, whether you believe it or not. If you let me have my wand back and fight like the true "pure blood" that you are, I might be able to prove it to you," Harry winked at Voldemort. He knew Voldemort was getting more and more upset by the minute, but all he could think of was delaying his death.

Everyone started at the two. Ginny started sobbing, along with Hermione. Ron stood there, shocked and terrified. Lupin, Tonks, McGonagall, and Dumbledore all looked at Harry, saddened and hopeless for not being able to help him.

"So you find this funny? Amusing? Oh, I'm afraid I'm going to have to prove you wrong, my dear friend. CRUCIO!" Voldemort bellowed.

Harry twitched on the floor, screaming with pain. It seemed to last for the longest time; it was never going to end, he wanted to die…and then the pain went away.

"That was nothing, Potter. I'm just warming up. _Crucio Capout_!" Voldemort yelled. Harry screamed with every bit of energy that he had left in him. The pain was worse, unbearable, he can't take it anymore!

"Crucio Capout is a spell cast when intending on killing someone. It drains out all the energy out of the person, for it is a form of the Cruciatus that is ten times worse," Dumbledore explained gravely, before anyone could ask. McGonagall buried her face in Dumbledore's chest, not wanting to watch Harry suffer. Lupin stared blankly, tears streaming down his cheeks. Dumbledore stood there, comforting McGonagall, while praying for Harry at the same time. Hermione, Ron, and Ginny stood there, tears in their eyes, trying hard not to watch the "duel", yet not succeeding.

Harry could not move. His body felt limp, like he had lost any muscle or limbs he ever had. Almost losing hope, Harry gathered himself together; focusing with all his might on the nonverbal summoning spell, he thought _Accio wand_ as hard as he could. To his surprise, his wand flew right into his hands.

Voldemort looked bemused and entertained. "Ah, I see you have been training. Very well. Crucio!" Voldemort bellowed once more. Harry barely had time to regain his energies before he felt that excruciating pain again.

"Harry, Harry…Remember in your fourth year, the nice little duel we had? Shall we show your friends exactly what happened? I think a little demonstration is in order."

"Once again, Harry…we bow to each other," said Voldemort, bending, though still keeping eye contact with Harry. "I'm sure Dumbledore has taught you your manners since your fourth year."

Harry looked at Dumbledore, then at McGonagall, Lupin, Tonks…his friends…Ginny…and he decided that he will not surrender. Voldemort will have to force him to bow, just like he did last time.

"It's not going to work Tom. I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of controlling me."

"I said, BOW!" Voldemort said, and Harry felt his spine struggle to curve once again, just like it had in his fourth year. But now, Harry pushed against that force. He would give away soon, he knew he would, but he wouldn't let Voldemort take over him. He couldn't. He had to fight, not for his own sake, but for everyone else. His back was giving away under pressure, he was sweating, and he felt like he would scream any moment…and then, the force were gone. Harry looked up at Voldemort, a smirk on his face.

"So you want to play it tough…I see. Well here's another flashback for you, Potter..." Harry felt a surge of anger going through him, but before he could do anything, he had been hit again by the Cruciatus. The pain was so intense, so nauseating; he was screaming louder and louder with every second, more and more blazing hot knives were cutting through his skin…and all of a sudden, the pain subsided again.

Voldemort kicked Harry, took his wand away from him, and turned to face the crowd.

"We are gathered here today…to celebrate the death of a well-respected wizard. I'm sure we will all miss him greatly."

"You won't win this war, Tom. Harry is a much more powerful wizard than you will ever be," Dumbledore said calmly. "Concentrate on your love, Harry….focus on your love."

Harry looked at Dumbledore, astonished. '_Love? He was standing there, almost defeated, and the only advice Dumbledore could come up with was to concentrate on love?'_ Seeing as Harry really had no other choice, he did was he was told to. Using Occlumency all the while, he thought about Ginny…how he wanted to hold her, to feel safe with her, like nothing in the world could ever come between them…about Ron and Hermione, how they make a great couple, how much he missed them during the time they were apart….Lupin and Tonks, how he appreciated their love and concern for him…he thought of Dumbledore and McGonagall…how close he felt to them, almost as if they were his grandparents…

"Love? Yes, please do, Harry. Think about _love_," Voldemort sneered.

Harry though of Sirius and his parents, how they died to save his life; _'And they didn't die in vain,'_ he thought. _'I will finish him if it's the last thing I do.'_

And as Voldemort began mocking Harry for his silly attempt to demolish him, a door in the Department of Mystery flew open. A bright white glow emanated from it, surrounded and bubble that contained Harry and Voldemort. Voldemort looked as thought he had been slapped in the face; he stood there, staring at the bright light in disbelief.

It got warmer and warmer inside. Harry felt his heart fill in with a sort of warm feeling; a feeling that rushes through your body every time one sees a loved one. And then he remembered…the room that Dumbledore had talked about at the end of his fifth year…the room with the force of love, the one Voldemort detested. He now understood everything that Dumbledore had tried to teach him. Everything he said about love, and hatred, and Voldemort's weakness. Harry now understood it.

"I finally defeat you Tom…you deserve to die, for everything that I've suffered; for everything that my family and friends suffered; for causing me so much pain. Not the Cruciatus type of pain—pain of losing my loved ones. And now…you get to either live with love and harmony, or die of love and harmony."

Voldemort stared, realization taking over him. "Love is a foolish thing, Potter," he said.

"Maybe…but death isn't," was his reply. And with that being said, Voldemort's soul burst. Voldemort screamed with pain and agony. "NOOOOOOOOO, YOU DIDN'T DESTROY MY HORCURXES! IT CAN'T BE; YOU'RE LYING!"

"Really, am I?" Harry smiled at him weakly. He felt his legs shaking, and soon his knees could not bear the weight of his body. He fell to the ground, face flat on the glass floor. He shakily gathered every bit of energy he had left in him and looked Voldemort in the eye.

"I despise you Tom Marvolo Riddle; I despise every bit of your half-blood flesh."

Voldemort finally burst into flames, and Harry collapsed. The glass bubble disappeared, and Dumbledore ran towards Harry. Everyone else took a little longer to react.

Dumbledore turned Harry over and began crying.

"Harry…Harry, please be alive…you have to be alive….Enervate!" Nothing worked. "Enervate!" Dumbledore tried once again. Nothing happened. But he felt a pulse…Dumbledore felt a weak pulse. He was relieved, a small smile on his face. He picked Harry up and turned to the rest of the group looking grave.

"Albus…is he alive? Is he breathing? He must be unconscious with all that he had endured back there…wake him up!" McGonagall implored.

"It is hard for me to estimate the severity of the situation…but I do know that Harry is badly injured and he needs medical help immediately. We can't take him to St. Mungo's or people will suspect something; I assume everyone still thinks he is dead?"

Everyone nodded silently, and McGonagall added, "They all think you're dead too." Dumbledore smiled at her and said, "We will clear things up later; I will explain everything that happened to myself and Harry when we are safe at Hogwarts once more."

Dumbledore mumbled Latin incantations, but then remembered that somehow the Anti-Apparition spells had already been lifted. They arrived at Hogwarts shortly after that; Dumbledore put Harry on one of the beds and called Madame Pomfrey to examine him. The rest of the group started at Dumbledore, awaiting his explanation.

Madame Pomfrey's examination took quite a long while; there was a lot of mending and healing to do. Half an hour later, she was finally done with her work. Harry was to wake up within a few hours of rest.

"I owe you all an explanation; where I have been for the past six months, how I escaped, why I had Severus fake my death. I'm sure you also want to know how come Harry is alive if the _Daily Prophet_ reported him dead." They all nodded.

So he told them everything; every bit of the story; how he transfigured a rock to look like him so that he could escape; how Snape used a non-verbal spell to cancel the Avada Kedavra he said; how he met Harry; everything about the horcruxes. He shared with them everything he could possibly think to share. He told them why Harry went into disguise and did not bother to correct anyone about his death; he felt he owed them at least the minimum of explaining everything.

No one said a word; they listened silently to Dumbledore's story, trying to let everything sink in. Dumbledore was almost done when Harry stirred and opened his eyes. The light stung and he cried in pain. Lupin dimmed the light, and Harry opened his eyes again.

"Harry, how are you feeling?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"Weird…I don't feel myself…I feel numb," he answered.

"Quite natural considering what you've been through," Dumbledore smiled at him kindly.

"You did it, Harry! You killed Voldemort!" Ron blurted.

"Ron! You're so insensitive!" Hermione scolded him.

"I…what?" Harry asked, looking confused.

"You destroyed Voldemort; with your love," Dumbledore explained the obvious.

Harry still looked as though he doubted what they were saying, but didn't say anything.

Finally, Harry asked, "Erm…Sir…where am I?"

There was an awkward silence. "Harry, you are at the Hogwarts infirmary. Are you sure you're feeling quite alright?" McGonagall asked concernedly.

"Yes, I'm fine…I just have one question."

"Ask away, Harry," Dumbledore grinned at him.

"Erm…Well…Who exactly are you?"

**Muahahahaha…and the sequel will come:) I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. As soon as I finish my other story, One Heck of a Year (which is coming very close to an end), I will start the sequel to this story. Please Review!**


	11. Chapter 1 from Sequel

**Harry Potter and the Darkness**

Chapter 1

Difficult Times Lie Ahead

"Harry…you don't remember who I am?" Dumbledore asked, though from his expression it seemed as though he already knew the answer.

"I've seen you before…but I don't know anything about you," he replied confusedly.

The others also exchanged confused looks.

"What is your full name, Harry?"

Harry looked around at them and answered sincerely, "I don't know."

"Harry, if you will excuse us for just a moment…we will be right back," Dumbledore tried smiling at him, but the twinkle was gone from his eyes.

The lot of them stepped out of the Hogwarts infirmary, all looking expectantly at Dumbledore for some sort of an explanation.

"It seems as though Harry does not remember who he is, who we are, or anything that happened to him other than the past few minutes," Dumbledore said sadly. The others just gaped at him.

"I did not expect this, nor do I know why this happened," he continued, "but I can assure you that with some effort from everyone Harry's memory will be stirred and he will be back to normal. I do not wish to overwhelm him, but it is crucial that he learns everything about himself—starting from his past and current identity, up to the very last spell he knew before this happened."

"I am not sure what happened to his skills—perhaps he is still able to perform everything quite easily, he just needs to re-learn them. I will need as much help as I can get in teaching him all of this; we don't have much time. I will explain more later; now, however, let's get back to Harry and act as though everything is normal. We will introduce ourselves and provide company for now, but tomorrow we will begin teaching him everything we can about what happened. We will start from the very beginning, and by this I mean when Harry was born. We will work our way up to today's events slowly—this is not something that can be done in mere hours. Is everyone with me?" Dumbledore inquired, as though daring anyone to object.

The rest of the group nodded silently, aware that tough times are ahead of them.

They walked into the infirmary and up to Harry's bed, smiling at him.

"Well, Harry, I am Professor Dumbledore, and this is my colleague, Professor McGonagall," Dumbledore said warmly to the boy. McGonagall smiled at him weakly.

"Wotcher, Harry," Tonks grinned at him while changing her hair to bubble gum pink again.

"Harry, this is Nymphadora—"

"_Don't_ call me Nymphadora, Remus," said Tonks.

"—Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be known by her surname only," added Remus and smiled having remembered saying these exact words to Harry two summers ago, "And my name is Remus Lupin."

Harry smiled at them and the first thought that came into his mind was that these two would make a cute couple.

"Hey, Harry. I'm Ron Weasley, and this is Hermione. Hermione Granger. And, erm, this is my sister, Ginny," said Ron awkwardly. It felt weird introducing oneself to someone you knew for years.

Harry smiled at everyone and felt as though he knew these people very well, though he could not remember ever meeting them before.

"So…are any of you my family?" Harry asked, observing each and every one of them as though looking for similarities.

"Er…no, not exactly, Harry," Lupin said. "Your family isn't here."

"Where are they? Where are my parents?" Harry asked, confused.

"Well…you see, Harry, your parents died when you were a baby," Lupin looked into his emerald green eyes. "And your godfather died two years ago. The only blood relatives you have left are Muggles, but they're not here," Lupin finished sadly.

"Muggles…" Harry muttered, looking deep in thought.

"Yes, I forgot, you must not know what that is...Muggles are—"

"Non-magic people…" Harry answered himself.

Everyone gaped at him.

"How did you know that?" Dumbledore asked him, taken aback.

"I'm not sure…heard it somewhere before, but I can't remember when…" Harry said confusedly.

Dumbledore and McGonagall exchanged glances before Dumbledore said, "Well, be must be going now…try to get some rest, Harry, and we will be back to visit you tomorrow."

"Good night," Ron, Hermione and Ginny said as they left the infirmary. Lupin and Tonks smiled at him and left as well.

Lupin and Tonks left the school after promising to stop by the next morning. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny went up to their dormitories, while Dumbledore and McGonagall went up to Dumbledore's office.

"Albus…this is horrible, we cannot possibly teach him everything about his whole life…and why is it so important to do this in such a short time? Certainly we can afford to do it over the summer as well, I expect he won't be going back to the Dursleys again," McGonagall seemed to be talking more to herself. "Albus, how is he—"

"Minerva, I feel it is time that I share a piece of information with you, one that will be very important not only in Harry's life, but in all of ours. I will need you to listen closely, because what I am about to tell you is not something you will want to hear." McGonagall stared at Dumbledore for a few moments, but then nodded and sat down in front of his desk.

"First, I must start with my reason for hiring Professor Trelawney," Dumbledore started. McGonagall looked surprised, but nodded for Dumbledore to go on. "You always had your doubts about the subject of Divination, and until some eighteen years ago, so have I," Dumbledore continued. "My first impression of Sibyll wasn't the best; I was disappointed. It seemed to me that she did not have a trace of the Seeing gift. I turned to leave. Then, however, she made a prophecy—a real one, for that matter—and I could deny her talents no more." Dumbledore paused for a moment, as though contemplating something. Then, he stood up and walked over to the black cabinet where he kept his stone basin. He retrieved the memory out of his temple and deposited it in the basin.

McGonagall looked at him bemusedly, watching his every move.

Dumbledore smiled at remembering this very moment he shared with Harry two years ago. He then stirred the contents of the basin with the tip of his wand.

A/N: this is from book 5—this part is all JKR's! I own nothing!

A figure rose out of it, draped in shawls, her eyes magnified to enormous size behind her glasses, and she revolved slowly, her feet in the basin. But when Sibyll Trelawney spoke, it was not in her usual ethereal, mystic voice, but harsh, hoarse tones.

"THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES…BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM, BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…AND THE DARK LORD WILL MARK HIM AS HIS EQUAL, BUT HE WILL HAVE THE POWER THE DARK LORD KNOWS NOT…AND EITHER MUST DIE AT THE HAND OF THE OTHER FOR NEITHER CAN LIVE WHILE THE OTHER SURVIVES…THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD WILL BE BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…"

Then slowly revolving Professor Trelawney sank back into the silver mass below and vanished.

A/N: end of copied part from book 5

McGonagall looked up at Dumbledore, shocked. She never suspected that Trelawney had a speck of Seer qualities in her; she always thought Divination was a joke.

"I can see you are as surprised as I was, Minerva," Dumbledore smiled weakly. "I, too, did not think Sibyll had it in her. However, she proved me wrong, and I felt she deserved the job of Divination teacher."

"As I am sure you have already guessed, this prophecy was concerning Harry Potter and Voldemort. This is why Harry was the one who had to kill Voldemort in the end."

"A few weeks after hiring Professor Trelawney, she made another prophecy to me; this time, however, it did not concern Voldemort." Dumbledore looked grave and serious.

Once again, Dumbledore took his wand and extracted the silvery strands from his temple. He put the memory in the basin and stirred.

A/N: the idea for this other prophecy also comes from book 5. It is part of one of the prophecies we heard when the glass orbs first shattered at the Ministry (where Harry only heard parts of it)

Another figure of Sibyll Trelawney appeared out of the basin, pearly white as a ghost; she began to speak:

"AT THE SOLSTICE WILL COME A NEW LEADER, ONE WE WILL ALL FEAR AND WHOM ONLY ONE CAN DEFEAT…THE ONE WHO HAD THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD, WHO HAD THE POWER THE DARK LORD KNEW NOT, WILL BE THE ONE TO DESTROY THE NEXT FORCE OF DARKNESS...A SACRIFICE MUST BE MADE, FOR NONE WILL COME AFTER THE AWAITING DARKNESS…"

Sibyll Trelawney evaporated back into the basin and a silvery mist was left in the air. McGonagall stared at Dumbledore, dumbfounded.

"But…but Albus, what does that mean?"

"It means that dark times are ahead of us, perhaps darker times than ever before…and we must be careful. It also means that Harry will be the one who defeats the runner up of Voldemort, which means that it is absolutely imperative that he learns everything there is to learn and re-learn, and it better be soon," Dumbledore explained with grim satisfaction.

McGonagall looked at Dumbledore, fear in her eyes, but one look at him assured her that somehow, everything is going to be ok.


End file.
